Soft-Pedic Reviews

Soft-Pedic

Soft-Pedic is Relief-Mart's all-foam hybrid mattress, combining the benefits of memory foam with those of latex. Like other Relief-Martmattresses, it was designed and tested by Dr, Rick Swartzburg, a chiropractor. According to Dr. Swartzburg, the Soft-Pedic "was specifically designed for side sleepers who need to reduce the pressure on the shoulders, while still supporting the low back." Basically, this is done by taking the design of the Tri-Pedicmemory foam mattress and inserting a layer of latex between the memory foam comfort layers and the base foam core. The idea is to benefit from both upper level conformity and deep level firm support.

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The top two layer of the Soft-Pedic are 2" each of memory foam. The upper layer is 4-lb. foam, softer than the 5-lb. foam beneath. The advantage of this is two-fold. First, it transitions support from sofest on top to firmest at the bottom, a concept used in the Taluxelatex mattress. The second advantage is experienced in cold weather or a very cool room. The 4-lb. foam is more sensitive to pressure, but the 5-lb material is more sensitive to heat. The foam closest to the sleeper begins conforming while the next layer down is still warming up.

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The third layer in this 4-layer mattress is 3" of Taluxe latex foam, a version of Talalay latex used by Relief-Mart. This material is breathable, since it is formed with vertical pores for ventilation and cooling. Latex is naturally resilient (bouncy, springy). This is to make it more supportive. The latex is configured into three zones to provide lumbar support for the side sleeper. Extra firmness in the center of the mattress is to bouy up the heaviest part of the body at the hips and thighs.

The base of the Soft-Pedic is a 6" support core of extra firm polyurethane foam. This is intended to provide overall underlying support to prevent bottoming out. This is only 47.15% of the 11" overall height of the mattress. In most foam mattresses, the support core accounts for more than half the mattress height.

The Soft-Pedic is sold directly by Relief-Mart through its marketing subsidiary Selectbed. They can customize the height and/or relative layer heights to meet the neeeds of the individual consumer.

The Soft-Pedic comes with a 120-day sleep trial period and a 30-year warranty.